In the past, there have been a wide range of proposals for providing a straw for utilization with a beverage container. These proposals all recognize the fact that there are both sanitary and practical reasons for preferring to consume a beverage from a can, bottle or other container directly through a straw rather than through the pour opening normally provided therein. Unfortunately, the proposals that have been made to date have not been accepted commercially for several reasons.
Among the reasons for preferring a straw, one of the most important is the fact that beverage containers particularly in the form of cans are almost always unsanitary. It is known, for instance, that in the case of carbonated beverages, such cans have a pour opening defined by a score line in the top end thereof together with a lever-type arrangement to separate the tab defined within the score line at least partially from the remainder of the top end of the can. When this has been done, the normal expectation of the soft drink company is that the consumer will drink the beverage from the can directly through the pour opening.
However, the can has undoubtedly been handled by others in transit to the consumer. This is inevitable in the normal distribution chain whereby the can may travel from the soft drink company, for instance, to a distribution point, to a retailer, and ultimately to the consumer. In this chain, the can may become contaminated by reason of such handling.
Moreover, this problem is even more pronounced when a consumer purchases a canned beverage from a soft drink machine. It is usually difficult, if not impossible, for the consumer to clean the area around the pour opening of a beverage container where the beverage is purchased from a machine for immediate consumption, as it might otherwise be for canned beverages purchased in a retail store and brought to the home of the consumer for consumption at a later time. As a result, the sanitary concerns are often paramount to the ordinary consumer.
Along these same lines is the problem of an accumulation of dirt in the vicinity of the pour opening. This is difficult to avoid, particularly where beverage containers may remain in a retail outlet for some period of time during which dust and the like can easily settle on the top end of a beverage container in and around the tab and lever mechanism associated with the pour opening. In fact, this result can also exist with machines for carbonated beverages in the event of unsatisfactory stocking practices.
Even with those for whom sanitation is not a concern of significance, there is another practical reason for the desirability of drinking straw use. This involves the fact that the standard tab and lever arrangement, whereby a portion of the top end of a beverage container is at least partially separated from the remainder thereof, leaves a sharp edge which can cause injury by reason of a cut to the lip or tongue of the consumer. Because of these reasons and others, it would be highly desirable to package a drinking straw with a can or other beverage container.
While the desirability is recognized, it is equally true that providing a drinking straw should be successfully accomplished with minimal expense. This means that the can or beverage container should require, preferably, no modification whatsoever, and the drinking straw should be packaged integral therewith taking into account all of the normal practices associated with the beverage industry. Unfortunately, the proposals that have been made to date have not been adapted because they have clearly failed to meet these criteria in a satisfactory fashion.
Among the earlier unsuccessful attempts to provide a drinking straw for use with a beverage container are those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,356,927; 4,134,247; 4,305,521; 4,247,016; 4,036,392; 3,874,554; 3,717,476; 3,656,654; 3,326,695; 3,211,379; 1,309,994; and 1,253,579.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the above stated problems, and the failures of the earlier attempts to overcome same, by accomplishing the above stated objects in a unique beverage container and packaging method.